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I just need a little extra help on this....I THOUGHT I would be "safe and happy" this Orthodox Christian 'Easter' (this coming Sunday) by bringing home Spelt instead of wheat flour to make special breads from..... I was rejoicing!....BUT....

I've made a very pretty bread from it in time for Sunday in the traditional decorated way....and I'm not sure if it was from the spiritual and mental illness issues going on in our house with mom.....or me smelling the baked bread for the first time at home in years....or because I've had issues with my gut the past few days (probably bacteria) ...but my stomach wound up all wiggly and painful after an hour of smelling it baking. It could have been my Miso soup that had hung around the fridge a few days that I consumed....but then again I don't think I've ever smelled or tasted anything made of straight Spelt.

During my issues as a formerly active Bulimic I had always considered that I had "allergies" to the wheat family until investigating the BTD and finding myself to be a nonnie; then it all made sense. I know I can't have corn, potato, etc. and that my wheat has to be sprouted first if I ever go near it again.

I never had loose stools, joint pain, painful gut or migranes in the past from wheat alone, But I can't help wondering if gluten and sugar were 2 of the things in the past that made me feel "like I was literally losing my mind -- going crazy -- losing it" I always laugh and tell my mother that if I eat conventional bread in stores "I turn into a deranged person."

I made this bread with no "avoids" whatsoever, and put a lot of effort in, hoping that mom and I could even have homemade pizza crust for this weekend.

I wonder how small a slice I should have of holiday bread I should have to test?And I wonder if there is anytyhing else besides celiac disease that gluten is associated with as far as illnesses?

A recent large study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that people with diagnosed, undiagnosed, and "latent" celiac disease or gluten sensitivity had a higher risk of death, mostly from heart disease and cancer. (i)

This study looked at almost 30,00 patients from 1969 to 2008 and examined deaths in three groups: Those with full-blown celiac disease, those with inflammation of their intestine but not full-blown celiac disease, and those with latent celiac disease or gluten sensitivity (elevated gluten antibodies but negative intestinal biopsy).

The findings were dramatic. There was a 39 percent increased risk of death in those with celiac disease, 72 percent increased risk in those with gut inflammation related to gluten, and 35 percent increased risk in those with gluten sensitivity but no celiac disease.

This is ground-breaking research that proves you don't have to have full-blown celiac disease with a positive intestinal biopsy (which is what conventional thinking tells us) to have serious health problems and complications--even death--from eating gluten.

Yet an estimated 99 percent of people who have a problem with eating gluten don't even know it. They ascribe their ill health or symptoms to something else--not gluten sensitivity, which is 100 percent curable.

A recent large study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that people with diagnosed, undiagnosed, and "latent" celiac disease or gluten sensitivity had a higher risk of death, mostly from heart disease and cancer. (i)

This study looked at almost 30,00 patients from 1969 to 2008 and examined deaths in three groups: Those with full-blown celiac disease, those with inflammation of their intestine but not full-blown celiac disease, and those with latent celiac disease or gluten sensitivity (elevated gluten antibodies but negative intestinal biopsy).

The findings were dramatic. There was a 39 percent increased risk of death in those with celiac disease, 72 percent increased risk in those with gut inflammation related to gluten, and 35 percent increased risk in those with gluten sensitivity but no celiac disease.

This is ground-breaking research that proves you don't have to have full-blown celiac disease with a positive intestinal biopsy (which is what conventional thinking tells us) to have serious health problems and complications--even death--from eating gluten.

Yet an estimated 99 percent of people who have a problem with eating gluten don't even know it. They ascribe their ill health or symptoms to something else--not gluten sensitivity, which is 100 percent curable.

"A review paper in The New England Journal of Medicine listed 55 "diseases" that can be caused by eating gluten. (iv) These include osteoporosis, irritable bowel disease, inflammatory bowel disease, anemia, cancer, fatigue, canker sores, (v) and rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis, and almost all other autoimmune diseases. Gluten is also linked to many psychiatric (vi) and neurological diseases, including anxiety, depression, (vii) schizophrenia, (viii) dementia, (ix) migraines, epilepsy, and neuropathy (nerve damage). (x) It has also been linked to autism.(ix)

We used to think that gluten problems or celiac disease were confined to children who had diarrhea, weight loss, and failure to thrive. Now we know you can be old, fat, and constipated and still have celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.

Gluten sensitivity is actually an autoimmune disease that creates inflammation throughout the body, with wide-ranging effects across all organ systems including your brain, heart, joints, digestive tract, and more. It can be the single cause behind many different "diseases." To correct these diseases, you need to treat the cause--which is often gluten sensitivity--not just the symptoms.

Of course, that doesn't mean that ALL cases of depression or autoimmune disease or any of these other problems are caused by gluten in everyone--but it is important to look for it if you have any chronic illness."

We used to think that gluten problems or celiac disease were confined to children who had diarrhea, weight loss, and failure to thrive. Now we know you can be old, fat, and constipated and still have celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.

Seraffa - have you heard about the gluten society? Having had problem with wheat for the last ten years, and being confirmed a non secretor I decided to get tested genetically for problems with gluten. It turns out I have 4 celiac genes - I think that's the most possible. My doctor wanted me to eat wheat to get tested for the antibodies but that wasn't an option... so I decided the genetic test was the next best thing

I don't think I had a problem with gluten until i became toxic with other things and it produced bad reactions - I guess my genes were dormant until my non secretor immune system couldn't handle it anymore.

Seraffa - have you heard about the gluten society? Having had problem with wheat for the last ten years, and being confirmed a non secretor I decided to get tested genetically for problems with gluten. It turns out I have 4 celiac genes - I think that's the most possible. My doctor wanted me to eat wheat to get tested for the antibodies but that wasn't an option... so I decided the genetic test was the next best thing

I don't think I had a problem with gluten until i became toxic with other things and it produced bad reactions - I guess my genes were dormant until my non secretor immune system couldn't handle it anymore.

My God! Thank you so much! THAT was the reason I backed away from any further testing for celiac disease. I knew that the moment that I put the wheat in my mouth I would be binging and vomiting as an active Bulimic. This is SUCH GOOD NEWS!!

I hear buckwheat and amaranth calling my name now from pancake-land......its time to board the ship with Bilbo and Frodo and the Elves head off into the sunset.....away from the Shire and from anything that even has traces of gluten, I think.

Seraffa - Thanks for the info. I am allergic to anything with even the smallest amount of gluten. I tested positive for it on two skin tests and on the IgG blood test. That and the allergies to other things, including dairy, are why I was so sick growing up but we didn't know why. My youngest daughter is as allergic as I am, but my oldest seems to have outgrown most of hers (that we can tell, anyway). Strange, because she was the sickest as a young child to gluten. Doctors thought she had celiac for a while. Anyway, I bought a book by Elizabeth Hasselbeck entitled THE G FREE DIET that is pretty good. She says that spelt is a hard wheat higher in protein and considered less allergenic than other wheat. I've never tried it.

Seraffa - have you heard about the gluten society? Having had problem with wheat for the last ten years, and being confirmed a non secretor I decided to get tested genetically for problems with gluten. It turns out I have 4 celiac genes - I think that's the most possible. My doctor wanted me to eat wheat to get tested for the antibodies but that wasn't an option... so I decided the genetic test was the next best thing

I don't think I had a problem with gluten until i became toxic with other things and it produced bad reactions - I guess my genes were dormant until my non secretor immune system couldn't handle it anymore.

Niagreen - what genetic test did you go for this? one doctor wanted me to do an Igg test but then I pointed out to his that I do not eat wheat so what would be the point. He answered that we all eat a bit of hidden gluten and don't know it. I said not me, I do all of my own cooking...he was speechless.

Yes, gluten can be hidden in so many things, including packaged luncheon meats, malt flavorings, and caramel coloring. And yes, Dianne, if you don't have gluten in your system, then it won't do any good to test the IgG blood test for it. The doctor told me that it tests for residual effects from food that you have eaten.

I hear buckwheat and amaranth calling my name now from pancake-land......its time to board the ship with Bilbo and Frodo and the Elves head off into the sunset.....away from the Shire and from anything that even has traces of gluten, I think.

I practically swoon over buckwheat and amaranth!!! And pancakes are so simple and can serve for bread any time. I bake mine in the oven on cookie sheets and freeze. The buckwheat cereal from Vitacost.com is absolutely delicious and not too sweet. I had a friend over who ate half a large box at one time they were so starved for something that wouldn't make them sick. Lovely!!!

"We are all born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid." -- Benjamin Franklin

Niagreen - what genetic test did you go for this? one doctor wanted me to do an Igg test but then I pointed out to his that I do not eat wheat so what would be the point. He answered that we all eat a bit of hidden gluten and don't know it. I said not me, I do all of my own cooking...he was speechless.

I ordered the test through The Gluten Society but the company they use is Kimball Genetics - the gluten society adds in a few more dna tests of the beta / alpha genes so it is meant to be more comprehensive than the kimball test alone. it is quite an expensive test but it rules things out. because i have r4 genes it means both my mother and father each have t least one gene, and my children will have at least one too.

Seraffa, i have heard many times that some pwople get incessant hunger when they eat gluten, so part of me is not surprised hearing your experiences with it when I came off it I felt like a drug addict and was eating constantly . Buckwheat all the way! Sweet potatoes have become my bread. Salad for breakfast!